6/49

A common type of lottery game. In this game, players choose six numbers out of a pool of 1 through 49. To win, the selection must match a certain number of balls from the draw.

1-off

A play type available in some daily draw games. If selected, you can win by matching the winning numbers in either exact order or be off by one (higher or lower), on one, two,three, four, or five numbers, depending on the game.

See: Box, Combo ,Pairs, Straight , Straight /Box

Add-on feature

Many lottery games include add-on features that players can choose to include in addition to the main game when buying lottery tickets. Normally, there’s a spot on lottery play slips that players can mark in order to include an add-on feature.

Add-on features usually cost an extra fee and offer a chance to increase prize money or improve odds.

Advanced draw

A game feature that allows players to enter future draws of the game. Players can choose to enter their numbers in multiple consecutive draws from a range defined by the lottery. The ticket value will increase based on the total number of plays.

Also known as an “Advanced Bet’ or “Multi Draw”.

Advertised jackpot

The jackpot value that the lottery advertises online and in the media. This is how much money the lottery operator guarantees if the winner chooses the annuity payment option.

Agent

A lottery ticket retailer.

Annuity

A payout option mailable in some lottery games with large jackpots. The winners collect their prize in recurring annual installments over a specific period of time, normally 20 or more years, instead of a one-time lump sum payment.The payments are set by the lottery rules and will add up to the advertised jackpot amount.

Also known as “Annuity Payment”.

See: Lump Sum Payment

Ball

The numbered object the lottery randomly selects during draws. Each game has a predefined amount of balls that will be drawn. To win, players must match the winning balls drawn.

Also known as “Number” or “Digit”

See: Digit, Number

Ball net

A group of numbered balls used in draw machines to choose the winning numbers of a lottery game. Each lottery has special rules and standards when it comes to the way the balls are built, drawn, and validated.

Bearer instrument

A document that declares the ownership of a certain property or payment

A lottery ticket acts as a bearer instrument, entitling its holder’s ownership to whatever prize it may have won. Ownership of your ticket is not officially recorded elsewhere,which is why signing the back of it is recommended.

Beneficiary

The recipient of any relevant lottery winnings.

Cancelled ticket

A ticket printed by the terminal that has been voided.

Capped jackpot

A jackpot that stops growing one it has reached a certain predefined value. Often,when a jackpot reaches its cap, any money that would have been added to it goes to lower prize tiers instead.

Claim center

An official lottery office or authorized lottery location where players can validate tickets and claim prizes. The prize amounts payable by claim centers varies between states.

These are separate from lottery retailers, which are authorised and licensed locations that are allowed to sell lottery products and to payout prizes up to a predetermined amount.

Consecutive numbers

Consecutive numbers are numbers that appear next to each other in numerical order.

A consecutive number sequence is broken when a drawn number does not immediately follow the one before it.

Examples of consecutive numbers: 2, 3, 4, and 43, 44, 45.

Example of a break in consecutive numbers:16,17, 22,18. 22 broke the list

Date game

A lottery game that takes place on certain days.

Draw

A draw, or drawing, is where the winning numbers are revealed, and “Draw Results” refers to the outcome of a specific draw.

Draws are conducted by an official lottery operator and are often broadcast live on television or online.

Estate

Often refers to a deceased person’s assets, including their money and property.

Estimated jackpot

The approximate top prize amount for a lottery’s upcoming draw.

The amount can fluctuate depending on the number of tickets sold and the number of winning tickets.

Fixed prize

A fixed prize does not change from one draw to the next. These tend to be found in lower prize tiers and daily draw games.

See: Fixed Payout

Fixed payout

A fixed payout is the cash amount that a player receives by matching a certain amount of numbers. Commonly found in daily draw games, instant win add-ons, or card games.

Going public

Revealing your identity as a jackpot winner to the press and general public.

For certain large jackpot lotteries, jackpot winners must reveal their identities, including their name, city of residence, and the amount of money won.

High numbers

Numbers that are in the top half of a number set. For example, the high numbers in a number set of 1 to 40 would be 20 to 40.

Hit

The appearance of a specific number in a draw.

Example: “Number 23 is quite a strong performer, having hit the last three out of five draws.”

Inheritance tax

Tax that must be paid by someone inheriting an estate or money.

Jackpot

The top prize offered by a lottery game.

Many lottery games have a progressive jackpot system. The jackpot amount will grow until it is either won or, in some cases, it hits an established limit (the jackpot cap).

See: Rollover

Jackpot fatigue

The slump in lottery ticket sales when the game’s jackpot amount is relatively low.Jackpot fatigue is a lottery phenomenon that suggests players are waiting until the game’s jackpot amount rises.

Keeper

A lottery number that you frequently choose to play on your ticket.

Keep out

A lottery number that you refrain from using, whether based on superstitions, its appearance history, or any other reason.

Last drawn

Used to refer to the last draw in which a number made an appearance in a lottery game.

Lottery

A luck-based game that involves matching certain numbers or symbols in order to win a prize.

Match

When a drawn number is the same as a player’s chosen number.

National lottery

The official lottery organization of a country.

Number generator

An online tool that can create lines of numbers for players.

Number range

The group of numbers from which a player selects their line from.

Also known as a “Number Pool” or “Ball Set.”

Numerology

The belief in a supernatural relationship between numbers and events.

Odds

The probability of a prize being won, based on all the possible combinations that can be drawn.

Lottery games typically offer fixed odds, meaning that the chances of winning a specific prize remain the same for every draw.

Online agent

Similar to a lottery messenger service, an online agent will purchase lottery tickets on your behalf.

Pairs

Play types often available in daily draw games such as Pick 3, Pick 4, or Pick 5.

Examples include:

• the first two numbers of a daily draw game (Front Pair)
• the last two numbers of a daily draw game (Back Pair)
• the first and last number of a daily draw game (Split Pair).

See: 1-Off, Box Combo Straight Straight/Box

Pari-mutuel

A prize system in which the cash allocated to a prize tier is equally shared between the winners of that category. A fixed percentage of total prize pool money goes into pari-mutuel prize tiers.

Payout

A monetary payment made by a lottery operator to a winner.

Play slip

The card that players use to mark their lottery choices. A retailer processes the slip and then prints the player’s lottery ticket Where online play is available, players use digital slips.

Also known as a “Betting Slip.”

Quick pick

An option where a lottery ticket’s numbers are randomly generated by a machine or computer, rather than picked by the ticket holder.

Raffle

Similar to a lottery, people purchase raffle tickets for the chance to win prizes. Unlike major lotteries—where the odds of winning are fixed—the odds of winning in a raffle can vary depending on how many players take part.

Result history

The history of lottery results, including information such as the winning numbers, number of winners, and prize amounts of past draws.

Results

The outcomes of a draw, including numbers drawn, prize amounts, and the number of winners for each prize tier.

Rollover

When a lottery jackpot is transferred into the next draw’s prize pool after there are no winners.

Scanned copy

Lottery messenger services often scan a player’s lottery tickets to provide proof of purchase.

These lottery tickets are sometimes referred to as “scanned copies,” and are usually stored in a player’s online account.

Skip

Refers to the absence of a given number from a draw. Note that this phenomenon does not affect the odds of a number conning up in any individual draw.

Example: “Number 40 has skipped the last three Powerball draws.”

Terminal

An electronic device used by lottery retailers to enter, print, and pay out lottery tickets.

Ticket

The printed document with your numbers. It also acts as your proof of purchase.

See: Bearer Instrument

Total sum

The value of a player’s lottery numbers when added together.

Example: “Adding my numbers 17, 20, 03, 40, and 12 together, my total sum is 92.”

Some games offer add-on features where players can win a prize if their numbers add up to the same sum as the drawn numbers. In daily draw games they may be referred to as a “Sum it Up” or “Lucky Sum” number

Unclaimed Prize

A lottery prize that has not been claimed by the winner. When a ticket that has won a large amount of money is nearing its expiration date, the lottery operator will often make an effort to find the winner.

Validation

The process every winning lottery ticket must undergo to confirm the following: it’s indeed a winner, it hasn’t been claimed before, and the prize amount is correct.

Depending on the value of the prize, players can take their ticket to a lottery retailer or operator to validate it.

Vendor

A lottery ticket seller.

See: Lottery Retailer

Wager

A sum of money placed on the outcome of an unpredictable event, such as a lottery draw. At the time of purchasing a ticket (typically for daily draw games) the player selects the desired wager when filling out the play slip.

Wheeling

A popular lottery system. A player selects a net of numbers, and then additional ticket lines are made for every possible combination of that set of numbers.

Also known as a “Lottery Wheel.”

Winner

What everyone playing the lottery hopes to be!